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Monday, October 7, 2013

1865 Autograph Album from Eastman Business College at Poughkeepsie, New York

1865 autograph album compiled of autographs collected at Eastman Business College in Poughkeepsie, New York. Several pages appear to be missing from the front of the album and a few throughout, including the title page and any page written by the owner. One of the missing pages has a scrid left at the binding edge with the wording "My dear Geo", so it's possible that the 1865 Eastman student who owned this album was named George.

The album is approximately 7" x 4" and contains pages signed by 38 people. An alphabetical list of the signers appears at the end of this post.One of the signers was named Eastman, with ornate initials for his given and middle names. His first initial was E, but I can't decipher the middle initial.

One signer, with the surname Brown, possibly O. T. Brown, drew an intricate bird on the facing page.

Philip Orth of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, called himself Asst. Cashier at E. C. Bank. I wonder if he really was the assistant cashier or was he a soft touch with a sense of humor?

If you have information to share on any of the signers listed below, please leave a comment or contact me directly. Thanks!List of signers: [Note: given names within a specific surname may not be in alphabetical order.]

F. Bardeen, signed at Eastman Business College in the Theo. Dept., on 17 January 1865

R. S. Barnes, signed 17 January 1865

E. A. Bartlett of Nashua, New Hampshire

E. S. B. Beecher of Orwell, New York, signed at Eastman Business College on 17 January 1865

Ornate first and middle initials that I can't decipher. Surname is Brown, from Milford, Massachusetts. Drew an intricate bird on the facing page.

William J. Carpenter, signed at Poughkeepsie, New York

E. A. Clarke of Nile, New York, signed at Eastman Business College on 16 January 1865

Ornate first initials that I can't decipher. Surname is Coombs, from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, signed at Eastman Business College on 16 January 1865

L. S. Currier of Nashua, New Hampshire

Royal S. DeWitt of Akron, Ohio

E. Eastman, signed 13 January 1865; I can't decipher the middle initial

Alden P. Gifford of Lowell, Massachusetts

C. H. Goodwin of Nashua, New Hampshire

Ornate first initials that I can't decipher. Surname is Graham, from Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, signed at Eastman Business College on 16 January 1865

Smith Greene of Danby, Vermont

D. C. Hammett of Mechanicstown, Maryland, signed at Eastman Business College on 17 January 1865. The abbreviation looks like Massachusetts but I didn't find a place by that name so I assume the "d" in "Md" just happened to look more like an "a".

George Hannah of Poughkeepsie, New York

W. A. Harding of Sandy Creek, New York, signed at Eastman Business College on 14 January 1865

E. W. Harvey of Minooka, Illinois, signed at Eastman College at Poughkeepsie, New York, on 13 January 1865

W. Husted of Poughkeepsie, New York, signed on 13 January 1865; can't decipher middle initial

H. A. Kelsey, signed at Eastman Business College, on 14 January 1865

M. N. Kline of Hamburg, Pennsylvania, signed at Eastman Business College on 17 January 1865

Charles W. Mallory, signed at Poughkeepsie, New York, on 13 January 1865

William C. Mather of Hoboken, New Jersey, signed at Eastman Business College on 17 January 1865

T. C. Nickerson of Cuyahoga Falls, Ohio, signed at Eastman Business College on 16 January 1865

Henry A. Nielson

Name is possibly Joseph Northrup, but I'm not positive of either given name or surname

Philip Orth of Williamsport, Pennsylvania, Asst. Cashier at the Eastman Business College Bank [whether true or facetious I don't know]

Horace C. Pease of Hartford, Vermont, signed at Eastman Business College, on 13 January 1865; was in the school band

Elbridge B. Plummer of Nashua, New Hampshire

D. A. Richardson of Elizabeth, New Jersey, signed at Eastman Business College on 13 January 1865

D. U. Shepard of Sheffield, Massachusetts

E. L. Snedeker of Hoboken, New Jersey, signed at Eastman Business College on 17 January 1865; middle initial might be L or S

S. Snyder of Musconetcong, New Jersey, signed at Eastman Business College, n 13 January 1865

Eben T. Sumner of Boston, Massachusetts

O. Waterhouse o City Island, New York; middle initial might be F or T or ?